Computers
This is my life, my bread-and-butter, and at one time, one of my biggest passions.
I build them, I program them, I network them, I rule them. I am a MacGyver,
an alchemist, a "jack of all trades" in the world of computers, online or off.
There are a lot of people who know quite a bit about specific pieces of the computer
puzzle (more than I), but I've been there since my TRS-80 4k Computer ($2000 including
cassette drive, thanks mom and dad). I've made the rounds. I have a wealth
of knowledge that allows me to pickup concepts easily, teach others, figure out
and fix most problems, etc... I have even created a successful and highly popular
online service (the domain
has since been transferred to a maker of timing equipment as of 2011), then all but
killed that service in the process of moving my family to another city, and have
tolerated those who (typically younger) think they know everything about computers
and "the internet" (you don't -- get over it). Orbiter began in 1994 and is still
up to this day, though limited in capacity compared to the height of it's success in
the mid- to late-nineties.

Music
Marching band, orchestra, and dabbling in composing (and no PE!). That was the order
of the day in High School for me (until I finished high school at Calvary Road Christian
Academy, where I was one of EIGHT graduates in their largest graduating class to that
date -- not much room for a band unfortunately). Music ruled my life back then, and
now it is very integral to many things. I, of course, have all my music in MP3 format
for ease of transportability (home, work, laptop). I have an AIWA MP3 CD Player in
my vehicle (100-150 of my favorite songs per CD, how can one complain?). I find
rare renditions or a capella or instrumental versions of great songs all the time, or
variations that I would never expect. It's all good (as my daughter says).

Comics
I read a copy of "ROM Spaceknight" one day as a kid, and the rest is history. My
collection is quite substantial, despite having not collected for about 8 years during
my early marriage years when we were watching our budget. Marvel, DC, and the occasional
small-company title make up the vast majority of my collection.

Approximately 12 systems (workstations and servers alike) in March 1992 to October 2004 were home-built, mostly running DOS and Windows OS

Built from scratch one of the (if not the) most successful online services in Central Florida in the 1990's - Orbiter Online - including all hardware and software configuration. Featured in two magazines.

Began collecting some Marvel comics with junior high and high school lunch money after that

Saw that DC Comics did the most intelligent thing in the world (called "Crisis On Infinite Earths") and began collecting some DC titles as well

My former wife and I visited my long-time book and comic shop right after we were married, and the owner gave us one free book from the shop (we picked a large oriental cookbook) and then I "had to" give up collecting comics due to monetary restrictions (1988 and 1989 respectively)

A few years later (approximately 1995-1996) I began collecting a few titles at a comic shop (which later renamed itself to Coliseum of Comics, and is where I get my comic "fix" to this day mostly)

The cost of comics when I started collecting: between 25 and 50 cents an issue

The cost of comics as of January 2004: between $1.99 and $3.25 an issue

On a side note... I created the background currently visible on this page (and several iterations of it) from scratch, and have watermarked it. I would appreciate it if anyone using this or the related graphics would at least supply a link BACK TO www.Malena.net when using this graphic. Thanks!